


You are the anchor that holds me

by elisewin



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-11-21
Updated: 2012-11-21
Packaged: 2017-11-19 04:47:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,810
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/569269
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elisewin/pseuds/elisewin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>One Tree Hill!AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	You are the anchor that holds me

It all starts out when Liam decides to join the high school's basketball team. Him and Harry have always been outsiders, the kind of people who make fun of the popular ones, of athletes and cheerleaders and all that jazz. And all of a sudden they find themselves dragged into that world they have always despised.

There is Zayn first. Harry is not sure why and how but they start talking while watching the matches, and that's it, really. He is Louis' best friend, okay, but he is not what Harry and Liam have expected such a popular person to be like, and when Zayn first shows Harry his vinyl collection he's pretty sure he could declare him eternal love.

 

Niall starts coming quite often to Liam's mom cafe, where Harry works. Liam brings him there once after training, and after tasting one of Harry's pies he says he will be loyal forever to the place.

 

And there's Louis, of course, Louis Tomlinson, the captain of the basketball team and half-brother of Liam and main reason he had avoided playing for the high school team for years. Louis symbolizes all Liam never had. A father. Louis was his choice. And anytime he looks at him he remembers everything – his mom raising him all by herself, all the sacrifices she made to open her cafe and at the same time having to deal with a child.

And playing by his side is not easy, and Louis does everything, everything he can to make it harder.

 

So when Louis asks Harry to become his tutor it does seem quite weird to him – and he does say no, at first. But Harry has always liked challenges and he wants to find out if he's able to turn him a decent student and changes his mind.

That's the only reason he does it, really. He still doesn't like Louis, like

at. all.

He's an idiot, he threats his best friend like shit.

(Liam is worried about the tutoring thing, but he thrusts Harry. _I swear Li, it will be just for this semester. I'm helping him just like I did with other students, he's nothing special._ )

 

Truth is, Harry works _so hard_ on hating Louis that he ends up not hating him at all. What he feels right now he's pretty sure it's quite the _opposite_ of hate, really.

That is why he's sitting right next to him on the grass watching Louis trying to open up a bottle of wine without a corkscrew because he was too busy acting cool and stealing the wine to his mom that he forgot to bring one and Harry is laughing like he hasn't done in months. He's not sure how things change so fast, how one day he would barely speak to Louis to realize he was actually enjoying his time with him.

Just like he's enjoying this whole night, this date, whatever it is, a bit too much - Louis' stupid jokes, Louis' laughs and Louis proving him he's not an ass as he wants people to believe so badly.

 

And Louis proves to Harry an awful load of times who he really is, after that first date and after that first kiss (and if Liam doesn't want to see it, Harry thinks, then he's probably not worth being his friend).

Louis helps Harry being a little more spontaneous and Harry helps Louis regain his basketball confidence - Liam sees it as a coincidence, if Louis comes back at his best after a while he's dating Harry, the two things are _absolutely_ not related. He's still convinced somehow that all Louis wants to do is make Harry suffer, and anytime Zayn tries to make him reason they end up fighting, so he gives up eventually. Zayn is sure he will understand, sooner or later, if he can't convince him, facts will.

Zayn sees a sparkle in Louis' eyes he hasn't seen in years (or _ever_ , actually) when he's with Harry and he likes it, simple as that. He doesn't think there's anything else to it. Liam, on the other hand, still sees Louis as the enemy to destroy.

Harry works at the cafe most of his free time, but his conversations with Liam are now all school related - like he has joined enemy lines now and he's not worth a proper talk (almost seventeen years of friendship trashed because of that. It sucks, Harry thinks, but he has nothing to apologies for. He hopes that Liam will see that his half-brother is not a monster. Harry knows that it was hard for him too, to realize what was behind Louis' mask. Liam has always been the most understanding person, but with Louis he can't give him the benefit of the doubt, like Harry did, why can't he? Especially him, of all people, who shares an indissoluble bound with Louis.)

 

Louis' parents decide to get divorced, and Louis cries for the first time in front of Harry and Harry feels helpless and hugs him tight, tell him he can spend the night there.

Louis sleeps at Harry's and he believes it is the first time he actually sleeps with someone he feels ridiculously attracted to, which proves to Louis that this time is different, that there is something more to it - like he still has to, but.

yeah.

It is _scary_ because it is different.

 

Harry is _terrified_ 'cause, unlike Louis, this is all new to him. It takes a while to get further the kissing and he's scared he won't be good enough at anything, he's afraid Louis will make comparison with everyone who came before (he doesn't even know how many came before, but he tries not to think about it) but Louis comforts him, tells him he's sure that no one could compare (no one has ever made his heart race that fast, but he doesn't say it to Harry, not yet).

 

Louis' parents' fight over his custody ends up with him passing more and more time at Harry's. He says, _as soon as I turn eighteen those two won't see me again, I swear._ And Harry hugs him tighter, night after night. _I'll tell you what, as soon as we graduate who cares about stupid college, I take my savings and you take yours and we move to South America and open a bar or something and everyone will fall in love with your pies and we're gonna have an awesome tan and we're going to be smokin' hot the whole time, what do you think?_

Harry laughs at Louis crazy plans but secretly he would really, really enjoy it. Running away, begin a new life. (and, oh God, he finds himself thinking it would be great _everywhere_ , if Louis is by his side.) (Where did his cynical self making fun of Liam's crushes end up?)

 

Liam changes his mind on a night when Zayn suggests to Liam's mom to do an open mic night at the cafe (Harry is not sure why, but Zayn spends more and more time there now).

Harry doesn't really want to do that, but Louis has been listening to him singing and playing his guitar (during evenings in which they were both supposed to study) so he says, _you should go, you're amazing_. Harry thinks he's average but he does it anyway, plays at the end because he hopes that everyone will leave except for Louis and Zayn and Liam's mom. But no one does, actually, and when he sings it comes natural to look into Louis' eyes for the whole song, pretending to be alone as they would usually do and Liam, well, sees it then. Sees the sparkle in both their eyes and sees Louis' glassy eyes when Harry is done. Liam doesn't admit out loud that he was kind of wrong, but he tries to fix his friendship with Harry, tries to get closer to him as he once was (because he misses him, anyway. Liam misses Harry and his music references he never gets and the way they used to be, when they played mini golf on the roof of the cafe, when it was them against the world) and tries to _create_ something with Louis (something that should exist naturally but both have always rejected).

 

The point is, they don't need to tell people because peoples see it in their eyes, and it's a good thing that Louis is captain of the basketball team so no one really tries to make fun of them. (there are mean comments, okay, Harry hears them sometimes in the corridors at school, but Louis has taught him of walking with his head up, proud of what he is, no matter what) (even if Louis himself was always really scared of being fully himself in public before.)

(maybe they taught each other how to be proud and not be scared, even though they don't realize it. They made each other strong.)

 

Christmas break is close and so are finals, and Louis has to go talk with a judge for the final decision over custody, and if he could ever choose right now, really, it would be neither of his parents, one day he jokingly ask Harry's parents if they could adopt him ( _we don't really want to witness incest in our house, kids._ Harry spits all the coffee he is drinking on his mom's shirt.)

There are finals, but most people are worried about organizing New Year's Eve parties (and with his great surprise, Harry is caught up too. Past years he would have just said, _New Year's Eve parties are stupid,_ but apparently Louis has the power to get him excited about whatever he is excited for).

So after finals, and the beginning of school break, Christmas comes in a whim. ( _“can Louis stay with us the night of 24_ _th_ _?” “do you even have to ask, honey? I kind of feel like we really adopted him...”_ Harry is grateful for his mom being so comfortable about the whole situation, he would just love her to stop with the whole adoption jokes, because really, next time he will undress Louis he'd feel kind of uncomfortable) but they don't have a real plan for New Year's Eve yet.

Luckily there's Niall, whose parents decide to organize a last minute trip and they all end up celebrating at his place – LouisAndHarry and Zayn and Liam.

And okay, Harry has never really liked New Year's Eve and he has always found stupid celebrating something like it, but this time he really feels it – a new beginning.

He feels it in Liam's smile at him and Louis, he feels it when he sees Zayn's hand shyly caressing Liam's, he feels it when he's not cold in Niall's house garden as they shout the countdown to New Year, wrapped in Louis' arms. 


End file.
